ATHENAArachne turning into a spider
Athena took pity on Arachne and turned her into
a spider, so that she could go on spinning and
weaving forever while hanging by a thread.
Arachne weaving
Athena was spellbound by the beauty and quality of
Arachne’s work. Some say she was so jealous that in a fit
of anger she struck the girl with her own weaving shuttle.
Athena the foster mother
Gaia hands over her newborn son
Erichthonius to the waiting Athena
while Hephaestus looks on.
Tiresias
The seer Tiresias predicted many events, using his gift of
prophecy to intervene in numerous myths, including those
about Oedipus and the city of Thebes.THE WEAVING CONTEST
One of Athena’s roles was as the goddess of weavers and embroiderers. When
someone was good at weaving, people said their gift came from Athena. But
Arachne, a mortal girl and a fine weaver, insisted that her gift was her own,
and had nothing to do with the goddess. This angered Athena, so she
challenged Arachne to a weaving and embroidery contest. Athena
saw that Arachne’s weaving was at least as good as her own
work, which showed the gods victorious over the mortals.
However, she was ofended by the subject of Arachne’s tapestry, which
depicted the various infidelities of her father, Zeus. In her jealousy and rage
she tore up Arachne’s work. A humiliated Arachne resolved to hang herself.
But Athena decided that this was too harsh a punishment and transformed
Arachne into a spider instead, so that she could continue weaving.ATHENA AND HEPHAESTUS
The craftsman god Hephaestus, who rescued Athena
from her father’s skull, had a lasting interest in the
goddess. As she grew up, Hephaestus fell in love with
her and asked Zeus for permission to marry her. Zeus
agreed, provided that his daughter was willing. But
Athena valued her virginity and did not want to marry,
so she turned Hephaestus down. Hephaestus then
tried to rape Athena, but the powerful goddess pushed
him away and Hephaestus spilled his seed onto the
ground. The seed fertilized Gaia (Mother Earth) and
Erichthonius was created.
Athena agreed to rear the
child, and he grew up
to later become the
ruler of Athens.THE BATHING OF ATHENA
Athena, who was a modest goddess, did not like others
to watch when she bathed at the sacred spring called
Hippocrene on Mount Helicon. But Tiresias, a man
from Thebes, was so entranced by the beauty of the
goddess that he followed her and her
attendant nymphs, and spied on the
goddess as she took of her clothes and
bathed. When Athena realized she
was being watched, she climbed out
and in her anger hit Tiresias across
the eyes, making him go blind.
One of the nymphs was sorry for
Tiresias and begged Athena to give
him something in compensation for
the loss of his sight. So Athena gave
Tiresias the gift of prophecy.TO THE GODDESS YIELD,
AND HUMBLY MEEK
A PARDON FOR YOUR BOLD
PRESUMPTION SEEK.
Ovid, Metamorphoses27